


Smallness lies in the eye of the beholder

by schrijverr



Category: The Mechanisms (Band)
Genre: Angst, First Meetings, Gen, Humor, Small Jonny d'Ville, depends on who he meets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2020-11-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:07:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27603244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/schrijverr/pseuds/schrijverr
Summary: No matter how old Jonny might be, he had been young when he got mechanized. This meant he was small, something all the others noticed upon first meeting him.AKA 8 times a Mech met Jonny for the first time and saw he was small.
Relationships: Jonny d'Ville & Everyone
Comments: 16
Kudos: 139





	Smallness lies in the eye of the beholder

**Author's Note:**

> You can also find this work on my tumblr, which is @schrijverr as well. Hope you pop in and say hi, cause I'd love to talk to y'all!

**1\. Nastya**

Nastya was running, her feet thumped beneath her as she tried to get away from the lab. She didn’t want to be here, she wanted to go home, but her home wasn’t there anymore. 

It wasn’t there anymore.

Tears sprung in her eyes as she the memories of death and misery floated through her brain once more. Her home, everything she’d ever known, run over by angry people.

Her thoughts were cut short by a loud thud and pain as she fell to the floor.

“Hey! Watch where you’re going.” a young indignant voice called out, there was a slight foreign accent there that didn’t match the one of the woman she’d woken up to.

She looked up and saw a boy getting up from the floor, he couldn’t be older than 17, definitely younger than her, but he looked more in control than she’d ever been as he dusted himself off with a huff.

He saw her staring and raised a brow as he asked: “Like the view?”

A frown swept over her face and she thought ‘oh no, he’s not that sort of guy, right?’ Apparently he noticed, because he quickly said: “Oh, not like that, you’re just staring. You must be the person she wanted to pick up. I’m Jonny.”

Hesitantly she replied: “I’m Nastya. So you have been here long?”

“Yeah.” there was a sad undertone to it, but Jonny shrugged it off and said: “But, you know, at least there’s booze and good food. Here I’ll show you.”

“You know how to make food?” Nastya couldn’t help but sound surprised.

It earned her an offended look and said: “Just because I’m a man doesn’t mean I can’t cook, okay. I don’t know how y’alls stupid gender rolls worked on the planet you’re from, but I can cook just fine and gender rolls are, as I said before, stupid.”

“Oh no, I didn’t mean it like that at all, you’re just so young and I ca-”

She got cut off by Jonny: “Hey! I ain’t young, lady.”

“What?” 

“I ain’t young, I’ve been on this ship for a few centuries now, okay, I am the First Mate and I ain’t young.” Nastya didn’t have the heart to tell him he looked very young when he pouted like that, so she kept her mouth shut and just agreed with him.

After that she dropped it, because he was giving her food and she was starving and when she finally figured out what had happened, she knew he had been speaking the truth, no matter how unbelievable it looked.

**2\. Ashes**

They almost laughed when Carmilla introduced the person who’d be going with them to help them burn everything to the ground, before they went with her.

It was a boy, a literal boy. 

Sure, he had a manic enough look in his eyes and carried himself with the presence of someone much older, but he was still a boy. There was some baby fat still in his cheeks and Ashes was taller than him, so was the girl slinking in the background and the Doctor herself.

But Ashes had become good in reading danger, so they didn’t argue with Carmilla and just decided to keep a close eye on him to make sure this kid wouldn’t muck everything up.

In the end it turned out the kid didn’t need a close eye at all and that he was very capable of vengeful violence, although they suspected it was more senseless for him, but nonetheless it was something Ashes could appreciate in a person.

They would soon find out that this kid wasn’t really a kid at all, but that didn’t stop them from calling him ‘kiddo’ to annoy him.

**3\. Ivy**

The data didn’t match, the data didn’t match at all.

Jonny was supposed to be the oldest member of the crew, it said it right there in his file that had been uploaded to her brain. There had also been a 98% he was childish based on his description, but she hadn’t expected it to be so literal.

The man, more a boy really, in front of her raised a brow at her and asked with a British voice that also didn’t match the file, which stated he was from New Texas: “Hello, you in there? Carmilla said you were functioning, so you must be. Hello? Hello?”

He waved a hand in front of her eyes and she blinked at him, then she said: “I did not expect you to be so young.”

While he had brightened at the fact that she reacted that fell the moment she finished her sentence. He huffed: “Why does everyone keep saying that? I’m not young, most would qualify me as quite old, you know.”

Ivy ran through everything she knew then told him: “Well, most old people like hearing how young they look for their age.”

Jonny chuckled at that and said: “I like you, you can stay.” then he turned around and as he walked away he called out: “Come and I’ll introduce you to the others and give you some food. You probably need it.”

And with that Ivy followed, deciding not to mention it again if she wanted to keep him as a friend.

**4\. Brian**

He had woken up without any memory of who or where he was. There had been a lady, who told him his name was Drumbot Brian, which was a strange name, but he couldn't really argue with her, since she seemed to know more about him than he did.

She had explained she had found him and fixed him, made him better. After that she forced him to do all sorts of test ranging from uncomfortable to horrifying, leaving him exhausted and scared.

When she finally left and he was all alone in this strange place.

He hated the loneliness almost as much as the experiments and he longed to see another face to tell him it was alright.

Lost in thoughts as he was, he nearly missed the sound of the door sliding open and footsteps coming into the room. He looked up to see a boy giving him a sad smile, which he hadn’t had the heart to return.

What sort of place was this if they did this to kids, he wondered.

“Doc Carmilla said you don’t need to eat and stuff, but I thought you might like some company, most do right after.” the kid said, “I’m Jonny, who are you?”

“Uhm, Drumbot Brian, I suppose.” he answered, then “Wait? Others? How many are there?”

“She told you that was your name?” Jonny answered with a gaze that had hardened with his words, ignoring his question for now.

He nodded in return, then fearfully he asked: “Is that not my name?”

Hearing the fear Jonny assured him: “It probably is, why would she give you a fake name, right? Anyway, you’re the fifth, sixth if you count Doc Carmilla.”

Brian, apparently, was not really assured, but ignored it to ask: “Is everyone so young?”

He did not know how old he was, but he somehow knew he was older than Jonny, he was at least taller, more massive, entirely made of metal… Not the time. And if everyone was that young, he would feel very out of place.

A laugh shook him out of his musings as Jonny grinned: “You’re the youngest aboard this ship.”

“What?”

“You’ll figure it out.” Jonny told him mysteriously, “Here I’ll introduce you to the others and if you manage to figure it out, I’ll try to steal your file to figure out how she found out about your name. Deal?”

Brian got the feeling he was making a big mistake, but he shook Jonnys hand anyway: “Deal.”

**5\. The Toy Soldier**

It had been picked up by really the most jolly of chaps, they’d warned it to not come with them, apparently it wouldn't like it, but with how it had felt on that stage, it couldn't imagine following anyone else.

Still, it seemed like the nice music people were playing some sort of hiding game, but The Toy Soldier did not mind looking for them, it was a fun game.

Then it found someone, but it wasn’t anyone it knew. The person was small and The Toy Soldier identified him as a kid. 

The Toy Soldier knew how to deal with lost children, so it cheerily asked: “Hello, Small Person, Are You Lost? How Can I Help?”

“What? Who the fuck are you?” the boy asked grumpily and confused.

It saw a bottle of whiskey in his hand and wondered who was in charge of this boy as it replied: “I Am The Toy Soldier, Sport. Who Are You? Where Are Your Parents?”

“What! I am not some kid, what are you doing on my ship?” the not-some-kid shrieked.

“I Am Sure You Are Very Grown Up, I Merely Wish To Help. I Followed Some Musicians Onto This Ship, Are They Your Guardians?” The Toy Soldier asked.

Fury overtook the boys face and he coldly said: “Oh, so you’re the one they replaced me with.”

Then a bullet ripped through The Toy Soldiers face and when it awoke, it was floating in space as the ship it had snuck onto disappeared out of sight. However, it was determined to find those people again and help that boy find his parents, so it began to try and find its way back.

The Toy Soldier never learned why Jonny would always be annoyed at it, even after it had figured out he wasn’t a little kid.

**6\. Tim**

There were many kids too young for war on the front, Tim had seen many taken before their time lying on the battlefield with unseeing eyes, but that did not mean it got easier to see them get send out into the fire.

So when he saw the kid with too much fire and blood lust in his eyes for him to survive this war, Tim decided to make sure he wouldn't get himself killed right away.

He knew the younger they were, the more of a man they thought themselves to be, which is why he introduced himself with: “Hey, I’m Tim, you been here long?”

The kid gave him a quick one over and shrugged: “Not here particularly, but I’ve been around.”

Hmm, maybe not as much of a rookie as Tim had assumed, although it could be a facade to seem tough. 

“Well, then I’ll show you where you can get some booze, my friend Bertie smuggled some in.” Tim told him conspiratorially, holding out a hand to heave him up.

The kid took his hand with a grin and told him: “You’re talking my language, Tim. I’m Jonny, show me that booze.”

Later Tim would be surprised at how well Jonny could hold his booze, after that he would be surprised at how good at surviving he was despite his complete lack of survival instinct, and finally he would be surprised to hear his voice after waking up from something he didn’t think he would.

“Jonny?” 

A sad sigh: “I’m sorry, Tim, I tried to stop her.”

“What happened? What’s going on? Where am I, Jonny?”

“I’ll tell you, just- just let me show you where you can get some booze first, okay?”

**7\. Raphaella**

Raphaella was a woman of unethical science, but even she had her boundaries.

She, from what she heard about the woman, who had mechanized the others had been a bit of an asshole, but she could see her work was well done when the others allowed her to look at it.

There was only one person she hadn’t been allowed to inspect yet, Jonny. She hadn’t even met the man, hidden away from her as he was. Some of the others had assured her it was nothing personal, he just didn’t like science people in general.

Which was why she was surprised to see an unfamiliar outline in the doorway of her lab. Not allowing herself to be fazed, she asked: “Hi there! How can I help you?”

“My heart is ticking weird.” a young, suspicious, yet unsure voice came.

“Ah, you must be Jonny, then. I’m Raphaella, but you can call me Raph, I don’t think we had the pleasure of meeting before.” she greeted him.

“Hm, yeah, pleasure.” Jonny answered, “Just don’t do anything without warning.”

When she agreed, he stepped into the room and he face got lit up by the lights in her lab, revealing this mysterious Jonny, she’d been kind of curious about.

He was not what she had expected. He was short and still had a baby-face, not at all the mysterious oldest member she had imagined. It suddenly hit her how young Jonny must have been when he had been mechanized.

She was pulled out of her musings by a cough from Jonny, who was sitting on one of her tables. Snapping her head his way, she caught the hint of an eyebrow raise.

With a smile, she said: “Sorry, just distracted. I am going to start with inspecting the casing outside and I will try avoiding having to cut you open, okay?”

He seemed surprised as he agreed and she felt a bit of fury at the person, who had done this, no matter how cool all her work was.

More conversationally she asked: “So, how old were you when you got mechanized?”

His eyes got wary and he slowly said: “Just turned 17, I think. Why do you want to know?”

“Oh, just curious. You know, with the aging process being shut still and all I wondered what sort of impact it would have on puberty and you are to only one still really in it.” she told him.

Fear filled his eyes and he swallowed, before saying: “You ain’t testing shit on me.”

“I won’t, I won’t.” she assured him, “I personally think it’s counterproductive when you have an unwilling participant, they’re much more likely to try and please you, which throws the data off. It’s really annoying. Besides I was only wondering if your voice still cracks sometimes.”

“Who even are you?” Jonny said with wonder.

Raphaella grinned: “I’m Raphaella la Cognizi, Science Officer. Well according to Ashes anyway.”

After that Jonny hung out with Raphaella more often, and yes his voice did still crack sometimes.

**8\. Marius**

Finally stumbling onto the ship he had been chasing for a long while now, Marius came face to face with a kid holding a gun. The kid raised the gun in question to Marius’s head and asked: “Who the fuck are you and what the fuck are you doing here?”

With his last energy, he did a bow with a flourish and said: “Doctor Baron Marius von Raum, trying to find the other Mechanisms?”

“The other?” the kid frowned.

Marius showed him his arm and shrugged: “Met an acquaintance of them.”

Fear filled the kids eyes as he looked around, before grabbing Marius by his collar and pulling him down with unexpected strength as he yelled: “Where is she? Are you working for her?”

“What? No, I’m not. She’s not here, I just want to find some other people that can’t die, there aren’t much of those, you know?” Marius told him, not sure why he was telling a kid all this.

“I don’t believe you, but only one way to find out if you’re lying, eh?” then Marius world went black as the kid pulled the trigger of the gun.

When Marius awoke there was a metal man, who questioned him until he was satisfied. As he unbound him, Marius asked: “Who was the kid that shot me?”

Drumbot Brian, as the man was apparently called, chuckled: “Oh, you mean, Jonny? He’s not a kid, actually the oldest of us all. Everyone made that mistake. I would recommend not calling him that to his face. The Toy Soldier still gets thrown out of an airlock for it from time to time, even though it hasn’t done it in centuries.”

Marius would get shot in the face once more, before he truly learned that lesson, but that was just part of life aboard the Aurora.

**Author's Note:**

> You cannot tell me, Jonny wouldn't be there every time after someone got mechanized. He was traumatized and alone when it happened to him, he wouldn't allow someone else to go through that alone, not when he can help it.
> 
> In my mind Jonny got mechanized just after he turned seventeen, but since he’s short with a slight baby-face people sometimes mistake him for twelve (AKA I project me onto him, lol)
> 
> The concept of young Jonny was kind of what I had been going for in [_Sick Jonny, soft Jonny, little ball of rage_](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25767016), but that accidentally turned into sick Jonny fluff, so I tried again with this, since I still love young Jonny.
> 
> Kudos and Comments make me feel as immortal as this crew is, so thank you so much for leaving any if you did!


End file.
